Zoning Approved For Proposed Ward 5 Homeless Shelter

In January we wrote that the DC government submitted a zoning application in order to move forward with the proposed Ward 5 homeless shelter. The proposed shelter location is the former MPD Building at 1700 Rhode Island Avenue, NE. We recently learned from this WAMU story that the Board of Zoning Adjustment (BZA) approved the zoning changes requested, paving the way for the shelter to move forward, and a step closer to the closing of DC General, which has housed up to 270 families at a time. From the WAMU story:

At a 13-hour hearing last month on whether the city should be granted a zoning waiver to go ahead with construction, critics that argued that the proposed buildings would be too tall and would create additional traffic in surrounding neighborhoods. They also took issue with how the sites for the shelters were selected, saying the nearby residents had not been properly consulted.

On Wednesday morning, zoning board members shot down those arguments.

You can see the Zoning request here. We will let you know when we hear anything new.